[Arizona-students] List Reminders

[Allison Hilliker]

I echo everything Arielle says below.  Let's all be respectful to one 
another, okay guys?

Thanks,
Allison: AABS vice president.



----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Arielle Silverman" <arielle71 at gmail.com>
To: <arizona-students at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Friday, December 07, 2007 10:19 PM
Subject: [Arizona-students] List Reminders


> Hi all,
>
> As past president of the organization I can't officially arbitrate on
> the issues that have been discussed in  the past couple of days.
> However, based on the standards to which this list (and other NFBNet
> lists) are generally held, I would like to make a few suggestions:
>
> First, the question of what is on- or off-topic for this list was
> raised. Discussions of Braille literacy, technology, and other
> problems confronting blind students are all fair game for discussion.
> What's not on-topic are posts that are only relevant to one or two
> individuals. For example, inquiries about a mailing that is only being
> sent to one person are not relevant to the entire list. Generally, if
> you know a question can only be answered by one or two people, it's
> not appropriate to post this question on the entire list. Instead, the
> best thing to do is to send your inquiry to the one or two people who
> can answer it, at their private email addresses. If you don't have the
> email addresses of the people that you need to contact privately, just
> post to the list and ask for their email addresses.
>
> Secondly, it's important to ensure that the subject of your message
> matches what you are writing about. This is so people who are very
> busy and don't want to read all the messages can decide what they need
> to read first, what they can delete, etc.
>
> Finally, I think a few reminders are in order about respectful debate
> and criticism. Both debate and criticism are always welcome on these
> lists, as long as they are respectful to all involved. Leaders in the
> student division and affiliate need to hear what's working and what
> isn't, so it's fine to express your ideas about how our activities can
> be improved. However, your suggestions will be much more effective if
> they are worded in productive and positive ways rather than being
> accusatory and negative. For instance, there is a difference between
> saying "I think that next year we should have more Braille at our
> exhibit" vs. "just in awe that for a group to claim they promote
> braille and do so much for the blind, to not have the most fundamental
> reading tool out there for us (braille) and yet claim to do so good
> for us. is crazy." The first provides advice about what to do better
> next time; the second just puts us on the defensive. As a general
> rule, if you want to post a message that's critical of the NFB, AABS
> or someone on the list, read the message over first and put your name
> in place of the person or group that you are talking about. Would you
> find the message offensive if someone else posted it referring to you?
> If so, then it doesn't belong on the list.
>
> In general, it's important to think a little about the purpose of your
> messages before you post them. Are you trying to get some advice or
> clarification from other listers, share resources with them, or
> stimulate a thought-provoking discussion? Or are you just hoping to
> prove a point or ruffle other people's feathers? I hope we can all
> post messages that clearly the student division move forward.
>
> Cheers
> Arielle
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